Our Australian Adventure - Part 2 - Timing

100820 Brisbane Australia

Tales of my adventures as a working anywhere warrior

Saw the a temperate rain forest yesterday, visited a wonderful cheese maker, drank yet another great bottle of Australian wine... oh the pace!

There are some major (and minor) temptations to be battled for the work anywhere warrior.  There are far more reasons to put off work out here in the great unknown than sitting at my desk home.

And after all if you didn't want to see the rainforest why did you come to Australia?  Quite right too, you need to spend the time seeing the sites, enjoying time with family and living the life.

It is one great big trade off.  If I stay at home I get gobs of work done and it's pretty 'easy' to get it done.  If I travel it's harder to get the work done but I get to travel.  But the work needs to be done, especially when taking extended travel time.

Was that something flying over my cuckoo's nest...?

Everyone will develop strategies that work that are perhaps unique to their personality and environment.  Here is what it working for me.

I go to bed early and I get up early.  I always have and I probably always will.  I expect to be the well liked by the staff at my retirement home...

Make sure your team back at the office knows that you are not on vacation 'all the time'.  Tell them the days of the week and the hours of the day that you will be available to them and that you expect ccommunications from them and they should expect rapid responses from you.  You need to be flexible with the time zone thing, no sense offering to be available between 2am and 4am in their mornings.  

I sent everyone in the firm an email saying I will be available between (using their TIMEZONE) 4pm and 8pm every evening (this is my 6am - 10am).  I also told them that they are not to think of me as 'on vacation' - oh we can't call Steve, he's on vacation... - NO - I am living in Australia for a month.  Living in Australia and work is part of that.

I also said that if necessary I can be available for calls at other times but we need to pre-arrange these calls a day in advance.

The truth is my work life (and yours) is similarly constrained even when you are back home in the office.  Your colleagues know when you are available and when you prefer not to be disturbed, think before 9am for some or after 6pm for others.   

My pattern has always been that from very early every morning to around 2pm I am readily avaliable for calls and people should expect prompt email replies.  After that maybe or maybe not.  

If people know then they can relax and access you when necessary.

I wonder if there is any more of that cheese we bought yesterday..focus Steve..back to the article...the cheese yes it was a wonderful brie...it would be great with...focus....that great bread....

Oh look at the time!  I hear the whistle blowing...